Duncan Crowie reflects on goal fest at Ikamva
ABC Motsepe League and MultiChoice Diski Challenge head coach at Ajax Cape Town, Duncan Crowie, shared his thoughts with ajaxct.co.za following what was a jam-packed weekend of football action.
The club’s ABC Motsepe team defeated Royal Blues 4-3 in a thrilling encounter at Ikamva on Friday evening to further solidify eighth place on the log standings.
“The way we played in the first half, it was probably one of the best performances I’ve seen from the ABC boys,” said Crowie.
“I could see progress as far as the technical and tactical side of things are concerned. In the second half there was a slump, I’m not worried about winning by such a small margin, but conceding three goals is worrying.
“Overall, I am happy with the performance. The players showed that they want to win and that is important as far as their development is concerned
Just under 14 hours later, the Urban Warriors returned to Ikamva for MDC action with some of those involved on Friday taking to the field once more; in a top of the table showdown against Golden Arrows.
Goals from Lassina Traore and Masilake Phohlongo handed the hosts a 2-1 lead at the break, but as was the case against Kaizer Chiefs last month, Ajax Cape Town’s performance dropped in the second.
Toriq Losper, though, was on hand to rifle home a stoppage-time equalizer as the Urban Warriors held their counterparts to a 3-3 draw, to duly put Arrows title celebrations on ice.
“We as a technical team need to look into the reasoning behind our performances taking a dip in the second half,” Crowie added. “It is becoming a norm now, it happened in the MDC game against Kaizer Chiefs as well – it will catch up with you eventually.
“It is good for the players to play so many games, it is good for the players to play under pressure, but we mustn’t push them too far because that can result in breakdowns. We have to manage that.
“We played against a good team in Golden Arrows, a team that has been top of the log for most of the season, a quality team. That said, without being biased, we completely outplayed them in the first half.
Crowie continued: “In the second half they [Arrows] cut through our defence like a hot knife through butter; I can blame fatigue, but I have to look at myself as well. Maybe I could’ve changed something tactically, but everything is easy in hindsight.
“The objective which is to improve, I think we are on the right track as far as that is concerned and we are holding our own against every team in both the ABC and MDC leagues – that is a plus.
The Urban Warriors will return to action on Tuesday in a friendly match against Steenburg United in Parow. Our opponents will take on Orbit College in a Round of 32 Nedbank Cup fixture this coming weekend.
Follow us @ajaxcapetown (Twitter), Ajax Cape Town (Facebook) & ajaxct (Instagram) for all the latest news from Ikamva.